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Category Archives: Small practical cars ($10 – 20k)

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5 Pros 5 star safety 5 year warranty (class leading) 5 years free service and roadside assistance Actually looks ok, decent interior space and a big boot One of the cheapest in its class (and very cheap compared to rivals such as the Mazda 6, Suzuki Kizashi or Volkswagen Jetta) 5 Cons Despite being a long term Malaysian brand, most people will think that you have bought one of those new Chinese cars Waiting room slow Poor fuel efficiency unlike most slightly […]

5 Pros Enormous boot and decent rear leg room. The Honda Civic will appeal to families on a budget 5 out of 5 star safety It is a Honda, so should be reliable (although this model is built in Thailand, not Japan) Looks much better than other attempts at a small sedan Ok fuel efficiency (but far from class leading) 5 Cons Quite expensive, it begins to approach the price of the Mazda 3, Hyundai i30, Toyota Corolla and Ford Focus The […]

5 Pros One of the cheapest cars in Australia and it has a five year warranty (making it definitely worth a look) Incredibly fuel efficient engine matches the similarly priced Suzuki Alto Decent interior space with an ok boot for this class (but no where near as good as the Honda Jazz) Easy to drive in town with a tight turning circle 4 Year / 60,000km capped priced servicing and a 5 out of 5 star safety rating 5 Cons Design is very feminine… […]

5 Pros Terrific dynamics are one of the main reasons the Volkswagen Polo has won the Drive car of the year award for this segment three years in a row The 77TSI engine provides excellent fuel efficiency and performance 5 out of 5 star safety Nice interior with heaps of space Volkswagen badge prestige, perfect for that inner snob 5 Cons Built in South Africa. Previous Volkswagen’s built here had a very poor reliability record and in Australia VW is known for high service […]

5 Pros The Hyundai Accent gives you the ability to buy pretty much the cheapest diesel small car on the market (although the Volkswagen Polo and Ford Fiesta are not that much more expensive) [Update: As pointed out by Chris in the comments, Hyundai will no longer be importing this model so remaining stocks (if any) are likely to be limited] 5 year warranty Big boot for this class Built in Korea (unlike the similarly priced Hyundai i20 which is […]

5 Pros The Nissan Almera has a big boot for this class with very good rear leg room (but poor headroom) Quite cheap for the size Ride is ok Claimed fuel economy is pretty good It has 6 cupholders… 5 Cons Does not yet have a safety rating, but it is based on the Nissan Micra which is below par Boring exterior and interior No cruise control or reversing sensors on some models Poor auto gearbox makes it difficult to […]

Just in case there was any question to what stereotype Nissan was chasing 5 Pros The Nissan Micra is one of the cheapest new cars on the Australian market Good interior room and a decent boot Very tight turning circle, light steering and good visibility make this an excellent city car Surprisingly ok dynamics at speed It looks better than the old model, which is a bit like looking better than your mum… 5 Cons Sub-par 4 out of 5 star safety (but […]

5 Pros The Hyundai i20 is roomy inside with a decent boot, although it is not as versatile as the Honda Jazz Class leading 5 year warranty New 6 speed manual transmission has brought in decent fuel efficiency (some versions are still pretty poor though) 5 out of 5 star safety across the range (again following a 2012 update) Does not need premium unleaded 5 Cons Bland styling Not particularly sporty or interesting Built in India Yawn Gearshift has been described as “rubbery” […]

Skoda Fabia falls down the rabbit hole 5 Pros The Fabia is very similar to the Volkswagen Polo – but built in the Czech Republic not South Africa Big boot and decent rear seat space for the size of vehicle Very fuel efficient – although this is becoming more and more common in this class Good visibility – which is becoming less and less common in this class European badge value – well Eastern European badge value anyway… 5 Cons Poor interior […]

Almost famous 5 Pros The Kia Rio was Carsguide 2011 car of the year – no doubt that the Rio is a quality choice Designed by an Italian, so it looks very unkorean… Roomy inside with decent rear leg room 5 year warranty. Kia’s are now properly built Cheap, fuel efficient and well appointed 5 Cons Kia is not a desirable brand – you need to put head before heart in this purchase The steering is a bit vague The Rio is […]

WOBUP – obviously German for WHASSUP… 5 Pros The terrific, fuel efficient Volkswagen Up! won World Car of the Year in 2012 It is gender neutral and just about the cheapest European car you can buy The VW is very well equipped for the price and the options are not that expensive The boot is surprisingly large and rear seat room is not bad The VW will apply the brakes automatically if it detects that you will hit the car in front (an […]

Looks masculine doesn’t it – unfortunately this colour is called cherry…. 5 Pros The Yaris is going to go forever – Toyota reliability is perfect for people who get confused at petrol stations Basic models are cheap and full of safety features such as 7 airbags Easy to drive with a tight turning circle – but it still won’t park itself… Largish boot and good rear seat space for this class More personality than a Corolla for a less money 5 Cons It […]

Cartoon version unfortunately unavailable in Australia 5 Pros The Honda Jazz is all about its interior. Tall roof and clever packaging mean it has a big boot and lots of space, no irony that overseas it is called the Honda Fit Good fuel efficiency, but no longer class leading. Some current competitors have taken over with turbochargers and clever fuel saving electronics Magic seats are impressive beyond the cool name. They are almost flat when folded down and cleverly also fold up from the […]